This study evaluated the feasibility of PLGA-based nanoparticle (NP) delivery to two key immunologic sites in transplantation — the donor organ and recipient lymph nodes — using non-human primate (NHP) ex vivo lung perfusion and skin allograft models. NPs encapsulating tocilizumab (TCZ) and NPs conjugated with MECA79 (targeting high endothelial venules) were tested.
NP-TCZ (~100 nm diameter, half-life 3.4 days) showed stronger inhibition of LPS-induced IL-8, IL-1β, and TNF-α in human macrophages vs. free TCZ. MECA79-conjugated NPs accumulated in draining lymph nodes at levels **17-fold higher** than non-draining nodes after systemic administration in NHP skin allograft models.
- Only feasibility and biodistribution were assessed; no transplant survival or long-term efficacy outcomes were reported. - Small NHP cohort with no stated sample sizes in the abstract. - Full text was not available; findings are limited to what is reported in the abstract.
This is early-stage preclinical work — not yet ready for clinical application — but it suggests that targeted nanoparticle platforms could one day enable local immunomodulation in transplant recipients while reducing systemic immunosuppression toxicity.
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